QuestionIs it a hard job to replace a 87 chev van whole steering columm with one from a junk yard ? what do i look for when i replace it ?I just bought the van and the column was broken from someone trying to stealing the van. the van sat for 6 months now.
AnswerHi Harry:
Hard is a relative term depending on your capabilities, tool familiarity and reference point. It would be an impossible job for my cousin, the attorney, to do, but I think my 19 yr old son could handle it just fine.
You have a couple of choices here.
To replace the whole column you need to make sure you purchase an exact match. Tilt, cruise, delay wipers, year and model all have to be the same or you will never get it right.
Next you need to check to see how much rust is on the lower shaft where the column bolts to the steering gearbox (outside the cab-under the hood). If it's REAL rusty then you have some work ahead of you trying to separate that connection and doing it so you can reassemble it with the new column.
Once you overcome these 2 major concerns it takes about an hour or so to replace it and hook everything back up. There are 4 bolts through the floor, 2 nuts that hold it to the dash and about 5 wire harnesses to match and connect.
The other option is to repair the column you have. This is exactly what my company does on a daily basis. We stock all the parts you would need and we have a video on our website to show you the procedure step by step. The parts usually cost between $100 and $150 for everything you would need.
If you decide to do that, you will need to contact us at info@stolenandrecovered.com and send us a picture of the broken column ( a few pics is even better) so we can get you a quote for the right parts and the cost.
I hope this helps
Here is our website for your reference
http://www.stolenandrecovered.com
Good luck
